The decisions which a Leader consciously makes, to not do something, can be quite revealing of his or her leadership talents. In this Series post, Delquanda Turner offers another True Leadership quality; in her last post, the 6 Qualities of True Leadership were explored by her. In this post, a 7th Quality of such non-profit and community leaders will be shared.
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Delquanda S. Turner
In my last post, I offered 6 Qualities of True Leadership. In this post I will offer a seventh quality of such community and non-profit leaders: The ability to say No. In certain situations, being able to say No, not Yes, is what separates the best leaders from the rest.
I’ve known of some Leaders who get in a bit of trouble because they said Yes and, as a result, got in over their head.
- Taking on more work than their current staffing or available funds can handle. This may cause an agency to become overextended and stressed.
- Even if a leader feels that saying Yes will not trigger a resource issue, they still must, I feel, answer these 2 questions, namely:
- Is the service in line with the Mission and values of our organization?
- Are we being effective and accountable to the services provided?
If the Leader can not answer Yes to both these questions, saying No is the right route. Those who practice true leadership acknowledge and accept this.
However, some leaders really struggle with this. They want to be able to serve more. They want to be able to do more. They are, in some situations, given the funding to provide a certain service, but don’t have the staffing resources to do so effectively. To avoid placing unreasonable demands on their staff, or providing diminished service to their clients, just saying No is the way to go. Sometimes the answer is not always no, it is not right now. Being able to answer the above questions also allows a leader to access the agency’s capacity and move it forward when the time is right.
At times, being an effectual, true leader is about what one chooses not to do.
LEARN
- Do you have the fortitude to say No when you need to say No?
- Don’t chase money in lieu of your purpose and your mission. You’ll pay more in the end.
- Can you back up the words that may come out of your mouth, with the skill sets and resources within your organization, and still be true to your underlying Mission?
- Sometimes you may win a battle (saying Yes to a service or project today) but end up losing the war (allowing your mission to be weakened). Choose carefully.
GROW
Your Outcome Well Team member
All money isn’t the same. As Turner shares her story, one line struck a nerve with me: “[Leaders] are, in some situations, given the funding to provide a certain service, but don’t have the staffing resources to do so effectively.” It speaks to a lesson that I have learned over and over in business and the profession of Sales.
Now please don’t walk away from this post just because I mentioned the word Sales. The truth of the matter is that 39% percent of all employees have to persuade others to take action in their daily work. I guarantee, when it comes to a non-profit that is seeking grants and donors, you are often putting together a case of why someone should support your organization. News flash: You’re selling. Let me continue.
Some money, some clients, some donors, and possibly some grants, are simply too expensive for the actual cost paid and sacrifices made. Let me give you a quick example from the business world.
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I was working with a client who was looking to purchase some technical hardware for his business. I had multiple internal meetings, sent him several lengthy emails, and participated in many face-to-face meetings with the client. All of this prior to providing the client a 30-day product trial. The purpose of the trial given was to allow the client to try out the product in a real environment; however, the business client chose to do artificial simulations that were far different than their actual everyday use. Towards the end of the trial they raised a whole series of questions about the product’s price. This was after I had, beyond a shadow of a doubt, proven that the growth trajectory and leadership of our product far surpassed our competitor’s inferior position – in many ways.
What’s my point? Sometimes you do everything possible, and it is still not good enough. Which brings me back to the 7th quality of true leadership, don’t say Yes when you need to say No. That client really took me through a lot! After several months of effort I did close the deal, but I never pursued that client any further. Why? Because I realized that the Cost of keeping the client was simply more than it was worth. I would lose more, in continuing to service the business, than it was worth.
- How much will you sacrifice, or lose, in saying YES to a project that, in your heart of hearts, you shouldn’t? Can you give a resounding YES to both of the questions that Turner shared above?
Frankly, this is so much harder in reality that it is in theory. It’s a hard thing to turn down people or money. People can pull at your heartstrings. Money will talk to your bottom line. Yet, at the end of the day, if you don’t learn to say No when the answer should be No, you are taking a risk. The risk is that you will hurt the larger mission, the purpose and vitality of your Non-Profit organization. Don’t do it.
Just as another non-profit leader (Sofia Crisp) offered her timely thoughts on the risks of mission creep, Delquanda Turner offered in this post her insights on the virtues of a Leader saying No, at times. A well-considered No can have as much impact as an energetic, passionate Yes.
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Do you remember a time when you said No and were glad you did?
Turner and Crisp surely have. If you are a leader, a true leader, you have too. Agreeing to do things your organization shouldn’t be doing isn’t a path to the outcomes you’re seeking. Please don’t chase grant money if you don’t have sufficient staff. Don’t compromise your service quality or organizational mission by saying Yes at the wrong times.
- The next post in this Turner Series will explore the right role for the community in planning the work that a non-profit or community leader does.
(to be continued)
Photo credit: Duncan C/flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)
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